


marionettes

by WinterEnchantress



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Friendship, Gen, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Sad Clay | Dream (Video Blogging RPF), Sad TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Trapped in a Play, not cc but whats happening now is a script, they're like characters playing out roles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-07
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-12 18:47:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29888931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WinterEnchantress/pseuds/WinterEnchantress
Summary: Tommy and Dream are the only ones aware that they're all trapped playing out a pre-written script. They're stuck together, repeating each day if they don't follow the script and they're slowly losing hope. All they have is each other, which is ironic considering what they have to play out.After the revival, they sit pressed together, Tommy's blood still on Dream's clothes, both of them hollow. It feels like the end.
Relationships: Clay | Dream & Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Clay | Dream & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF)
Comments: 20
Kudos: 266





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> it's been haunting me for a while so i decided to go ahead and write it. also, dream and techno friendship pog.

The moment the feeling of being watched fades, both Tommy and Dream slide down on the floor. **  
**

“Fuck,” Tommy says with feeling, eyes hollow.

He glances at Dream, at the dried blood on his uniform, bloodshot eyes, agony written all over his face. It’s terrifying and he feels like shit, so he just gets up and collapses back by Dream’s side, leaning against the man. For a second, they both freeze but nothing bad happens and Dream wraps an arm around Tommy.

It’s strange, sitting there with blood splatters still on the floor and on Dream, just listening to the lava and that fucking bell. It’s strange, and Tommy just died but came back, and the only person he can and wants to get comfort from is the man who killed him.

“This is getting more and more fucked,” Dream says finally.

Tommy snorts, leans his head against Dream’s shoulder and stays quiet. He’s tired, exhaustion pulling at his bones but he doesn’t want to go to sleep now, not when they finally have a moment for themselves. Being dead was fucking horrifying but Dream being stuck there with Tommy’s blood on his hands had to suck too.

He’s not sure how much longer they can stay sane.

“Think we’ll ever get outta here, Big Man?” Tommy asks quietly, feeling a bit not like himself. It’s too much and not enough and he wants to go home.

Or not even home, he wants to hide somewhere with Dream and wait until everyone is back to normal, not being forced to play out a sick script, being tortured and manipulated by a man he considers almost a brother. 

“I dunno, Tommy, really,” comes Dream’s whispered rely and Tommy squeezes his eyes shut.

Before, Dream would always say that t’s a matter of time, that they’ll find a way out, break this sick cycle of silence. Now, even the admin himself isn’t sure.

“Are you even an admin anymore?” he asks suddenly, deciding to change the topic a bit.

“No,” Dream says in a hollow voice. “Not for a while now. I guess somewhere there’s a god-like creature running around but I’m not-”

“Yeah,” Tommy finishes. “We’re just two fucking puppets dancing on a string.”

Dream gives a bitter laugh, pressing his face against Tommy’s hair. They both smell bad, like sweat and blood and raw fucking potatoes but it’s a comfort nonetheless. Tommy allows himself to hide his face in Dream’s dirty uniform and not think for a bit, hiding away from everyone.

Being in the prison is both good and bad. 

It sucks, being stuck there with no sun and slowly progressing poisoning from the raw potatoes, just lava and obsidian walls. It sucks that they have to play out those disgusting scenes, that Dream has to play insanity and fucking beat Tommy to death and then bring him back. It all sucks but at least they have a bit of time for themselves.

For some reason, they aren’t being watched as much now, left alone for most of the time. They had over a week of being alone, spending some time talking and playing, sitting pressed together, both exhausted from pretending. That part isn’t so bad.

“Maybe they’ll give us another cat,” Dream mentions eventually, voice lifting up a bit.

Tommy grimaces at the memory of what he did but shakes it off with practised ease. They’ll both need extensive therapy after all of this is over. If it’ll ever be over.

“Yeah fuck no, who the fuck knows what those dickheads will come up with next,” Tommy replies angrily.

Dream hums.

They sit in silence a bit more.

“I miss Techno,” Dream says softly, breaking the silence. “My Techno.”

Tommy doesn’t answer for a while, a bit confused. “Did you know each other? Before?”

“Yeah,” Dream hums. It’s sweet for a second. “Childhood friends. First crush, all that fun.”

It is a bit cringe, listening to Dream talk about crushes but Tommy knows Dream by now and they need to talk like that from time to time. They both had lives before the Dream SMP but Tommy gets that Dream has more memories, more experiences. It must be tough, being trapped on his own server, forced to dance on strings to a progressively more fucked up song.

“He’ll come, eventually.”

“Maybe,” Dream agrees. “But he won’t be my Techno, just this...character. Like all of them are.”

It doesn’t make Tommy cry but he feels a bit like he can’t cry anymore. They’ve been trapped for so long already, forced to relieve days if they stray off the script, everything is different now. Maybe the others will find a way to rebound, bounce back, but they’re damaged now, broken beyond repair. It sucks.

“Sorry, Big man,” Tommy says softly.

Dream shakes his head, Tommy can feel it, and doesn’t say anything else. 

More time passes, not that it matters much. They don’t have anything to do here, aside from writing in books, what they wish could happen, how they wish the whole story could turn out. It’s not much of a help, but they need an outlet.

“Will you bring Schlatt back?”

“I hope the fuck not,” Dream snorts. “At least dead he doesn’t have to play along, he can just fucking sleep or do whatever in his other worlds. He’s free.”

Freedom. At this point, it’s almost a foreign concept and it doesn’t even taste sweet anymore. It’s just the bitterness of what will never be. They’re both losing hope but they don’t have anything left anymore. They can’t die, the plot won’t move without them, and now the book is real and works so even Dream can’t try to escape through that.

All they can do is sit here and act out characters that aren’t them but are starting to blend in with them a bit too much. All they have is each other and whoever is watching them burn the ground they stand on.

It’s a bit too much.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> since so many people left nice comments i decided to add more! hope you all enjoy this one too

Tommy is unbelievably tired and so so glad when the doors close behind him. **  
**

Everything is a bit too much. Being in the prison with Dream sucked for multiple reasons but at least he could talk to someone who understood this madness and was in the same boat as him. With Dream, he never had to worry if he’s just playing a character that’s warped beyond recognition. Dream is Dream and he will remain so, even if he’s a bit broken now, a bit sadder.

Being out feels like a breath of fresh air but also suffocating.

Tommy hates how his life became this mess of contradictions and being alone. His closest friend, the only person who understands is the fucking villain of the story, the person who had to kill him with his bare hands. Tommy’s not sure how they’re still sane.

Maybe they aren’t, maybe they both lost it a bit but Tommy still feels...like himself. Maybe not as sunny and reckless as before but definitely himself. He still thinks the script is stupid, he still thinks the character he plays is too immature and frustrates him to no end. At first, it was funny but at this point, he’s just tired.

“Fucking hell,” he mutters, falling on the bed.

He’s taken a shower already, changed his clothes and has his armour in his inventory. His character is supposed to be super paranoid which Tommy gets but he won’t be sleeping fully armed. No one is watching now, he can rest.

It feels a bit lonely now, after so long with Dream, but Tommy still curls up in bed and sighs deeply. It’s so soft it almost feels wrong, since obsidian is both cold and hard. He thinks of Dream, still stuck in that cell, covered in his blood, all alone. It feels wrong.

With a huff, Tommy turns to the side and cuddles his pillow close. He doesn’t want to think about everyone else, it never ends well. He’s not sure why they’re written the way they are but they’re not real, not the way he and Dream are, the way even Schlatt was before he died. He kind of misses Schlatt.

It takes a while, but Tommy manages to fall asleep only to get woken up by someone shaking him. In an instant, he’s awake. He didn’t know something was added to the script so he just reaches for his sword but a familiar hand closes around his wrist.

“Dream?” he asks in disbelief.

The other man just laughs, free of his hideous prison outfit. Now he’s wearing a muted green shirt and a long cloak, his mask gone. He’s smiling and free, eyes dancing.

“Hi,” Dream chirps.

For a second, they just stare at each other before Tommy pulls the older man in a hug. It feels warm and safe now, and Dream just smells like forest and soap, no blood or lava. He’s being hugged in turn and they stand there, half on the bed, hugging each other in silence. Tommy doesn’t cry, he can’t anymore, but it’s still a relief.

“How the fuck did you get outta there?” he asks finally when they pull apart.

“Wel… Whatever godly entity took over my admin powers decided to pop me out for a bit,” Dream explains cheerily. “We don’t have long but we can go for a little trip and talk. Maybe look at the sun…”

“Yeah, let’s go!”

He’s excited again, jumping around the bedroom as he gets dressed hurriedly. Dream just watches him patiently but Tommy can see the tension and excitement in him. It’s been a long time since Dream saw the outside and he wants to make the most of it. Who the fuck knows how long he’ll be stuck there.

Before he can forget, Tommy grabs the stew someone left there, as well as some cooked pork and bread. He even has melon slices there, so he takes all of it. They’re both sick of prison food but Dream is worryingly thin now, eyes gaunt and cheekbones standing out. He’s all muscle, Tommy saw that in the prison, no protective fat left. He has to feed him at least a bit.

“Think you’ll be able to bring something back there?” he asks as they’re sneaking out of his home.

“Probably not,” Dream shrugs, whispering. 

They have to be very careful on their way out, make sure no one sees them. Tommy really doesn’t want to repeat this day.

As soon as they’re out of range, they break in a sprint but it doesn’t take long before they’re both tired and panting for breath. Tommy is sure that Dream is furious with himself for losing his form so much. The older man trains in the prison every day, trains a lot, but potatoes aren’t really nutritious and the time in Pandora Vault hasn’t been kind to him.

They slow down and just walk. Dream almost skips around, touching everything, gathering flowers and fruits, tearing into apples ravenously. Tommy watches in silence, for once not eager to fill it with mindless chatter. They stop at a clearing and Dream takes them closer to a mountain. An old campsite is already there, all they have to do is light some fire and keep watch for mobs.

“May I interest you in some stew, good sir?” Tommy asks jokingly and laughs when Dream almost jumps at him in eagerness.

Tommy eats slowly, he already had dinner, but Dream finishes 3 bowls easily, before taking care of the melons and the bread. Eventually, he falls on his back and pats his stomach.

“Oh fuck, that feels good,” he mutters with a sigh.

Tommy doesn’t even want to think how fucked up is that, the fact that Dream is so happy after some fucking mushroom stew and some fruit. The prison really sucks.

He moves so that he can drop next to Dream and leans against the man’s side when the other sits up to start making a flower crown. Dream doesn’t ask how things are going, he doesn’t ask how everyone reacted, doesn’t ask how Tommy is. They both already know.

“This is nice,” Dream whispers suddenly. “It’s been a while.”

“Yeah,” he agrees. “Maybe you’ll get some time out now if the all-seeing god allows.”

Dream chuckles and plops the crown on Tommy’s head. “Maybe,” he hums. “Would be nice.”

The night is slowly passing around them, and they revel in nature. Dream’s eyes are wide open, staring at the trees and birds and an occasional deer. Eventually, as the sky brightens, Tommy gets up and decides to hunt a bit. He gets 3 rabbits and a chicken.

“Maybe you’ll be allowed to at least keep the food,” he explains and they cook it all before Dream packs it up in his inventory.

They watch the sunrise together, Tommy mindlessly making a shitty flower crown that he gives to Dream. The other man wears it proudly and they smile at each other in silence before Dream frowns.

“I think it’s my time,” he says quietly, sad and hollow.

Tommy nods, suddenly choked up, and hugs Dream tightly. They hold each other was Dream fades from view, his clothes and an iron sword dropping where he used to be. The food is gone though, and Tommy hopes it’ll help some. 

He gathers Dream’s clothes into his inventory and doesn’t take off his flower crown. It ends up on the wall in his house. It’s nice to smile at the yellow flowers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well, think you can do 10 comments under this? and maybe leave suggestions what you want to see in this verse, it's actually pretty fun, bittersweet.

**Author's Note:**

> tell me if you liked it! lets try and get 10 comments maybe? i'd love to write more if you guys enjoyed it :)


End file.
